The subject matter herein relates generally to electrical bus bars having connector shrouds for connecting to mating connectors.
In some electrical systems, power is delivered to a circuit board, an electrical device, and/or other electrical components through a bus bar. A bus bar typically includes one or more planar strips of conductive material, such as copper. One strip or layer may be used to convey electrical power, and another strip or layer may be used as a ground. Bus bars may be preferable for carrying power to electrical components over other components, such as circuit boards or cables, due to a generally higher current carrying capacity and better inductance with bus bars.
The power on the bus bar is distributed to electrical components using connectors. One known type of connector for use with bus bars is a two-piece design in which a first connector is mounted to the bus bar, and a second, mating connector removably mates to the mounted first connector. In two-piece designs, it is often difficult and expensive to mount the first connector to the bus bar. For example, some typical methods of mounting connectors to circuit boards, such as soldering, are not feasible for mounting connectors to bus bars. In addition, the bus bar is typically formed of multiple layers of thin conductive sheets, and the first connector may include contacts that require electrical connection to different layers of the thin conductive sheets.
Another known type of connector involves a single-piece design in which a mating connector mates directly to the bus bar, typically at an edge, such that the edge of the bus bar is received in a space between two sets of contacts. Because the bus bar may be relatively thin and infirm, the forces imparted on the bus bar during mating and un-mating of the connector may damage the bus bar. In addition, often the space between contacts of the connector is not adjustable, so the connector may only accommodate bus bars within a narrow range of thicknesses. As a result, the type and/or size of the connectors configured to mate with the bus bar may need to be specifically selected based on the thickness of the bus bar used in a given application. Furthermore, the contacts of the single-piece connector mate directly to the electrified layers of the bus bar, so when the connector is removed from the bus bar, the exposed area of the bus bar may be hazardous to the touch.
A need remains for an electrical system that allows a mating connector to electrically couple to a bus bar without the problems identified above that are associated with known electrical systems.